The Yu opera Fu Hao is inspired by China’s earliest archaeologically documented female general and stateswoman. Drawing on artefacts from Fu Hao’s tomb at Yinxu and oracle-bone records, the production combines historical evidence with artistic imagination to portray an ancient woman of both martial strength and tenderness. Set against the transformation of the Shang court and the advance of early civilization, its expansive stage narrative evokes dynastic change and the fate of the realm. Plum Blossom Award winner Wu Suzhen leads the cast, using Yu opera to celebrate the courage and sense of responsibility of Chinese women and to give this historical figure a vivid new life for our own time.
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